I’m sporting my first crew cut since junior-high school.
I went to get a haircut the other day and, before I could say “take a little off the top,’’ the barber pulled out his electric clippers and mowed off all my hair like I was a Marine recruit. While I stared into the mirror in disbelief, he stood behind me smiling, pointing to my head and nodding his approval.
I’ve had other haircuts in Zhengzhou and this has never happened before. Maybe the barber likes playing tricks on foreigners, or maybe he actually thought I looked better as a semi-skinhead.
At my age, the problem with a buzz cut is that it highlights my bald spot. When I have longer hair, it’s not as noticeable. But now, it’s as glaring as a Westerner trying to eat soup with chopsticks.
Next time I get a haircut, I’m bringing written instructions in Chinese.
***
Sometimes, I’m a slow learner.
I’ve been living in China for seven months now, and I just figured out how to stop the flooding in my bathroom every time I use my washing machine.
Until now, whenever the washing machine was going through a draining cycle, the water would pour out from a hole in the floor where a connecting tube was inserted. I assumed it was just another example of crude Chinese engineering, so I never complained about it.
But during a meeting with our landlady a few nights ago, teachers were asked to point out anything that needed fixing in their apartments. When I mentioned the flooding, I quickly learned that nobody else was having that problem. The landlady said (through a translator) that she thought the drain was clogged and that she would send a repairman to fix it.
Sure enough, the next day I used my washing machine without any flooding. My mop is most grateful.
